Live From The Streets of South Africa
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1. Tell us a bit about yourself?
My Name is Kyle Thomson and I’m a Street Photographer from Johannesburg. Photography really is my main interest, Im super passionate about it especially analogue. I worked as a scan technician at the lab for a while and then at the camera store right after that and I think the two jobs helped me develop a really deep love for the art, it was just eat sleep drink photography everyday. As far as interests outside of that I really love collecting watches a friend of mine introduced me to watches and I got hooked immediately, its been a quiet passion of mine for a while now.
2. How woiuld you describe your photographic style?
I think my photographic style is something that’s always changing, right now I’d describe it as real raw and honest. Doing street photography and learning how to make pictures that really capture the essence of the moments I encounter has influenced everything else I do with a camera now, I’m more focused on the moment now and really trying to bring whatever it makes me feel to life, doing my best convey some kind of honest emotion or expression through the image.
3. What pushed you to start shooting?
Before I found photography I was into skating and music and fashion and a whole bunch of other stuff, I’ve always found a way to express myself creatively. Photography started for me out of pure chance and curiosity I just found my parents old digicam and started taking pictures of my friends and the just never stopped taking pictures after that.
4. How do you stay motivated?
I get incredibly depressed if I’m not taking pictures or working on pictures so that in itself is motivation, but I look at photobooks as much as I can, I’m obsessed with Paul B’s YouTube channel I think anyone that’s interested in street should watch it, and I live with my camera, it goes everywhere with me I think at this point photography is just my way of relating to the world so carrying a camera and taking pictures of whatever I find interesting is just life for me now.
5. Who is your inspiration when it comes to photography?
I wouldn’t say there’s specific images really but I’m really Inspired by what Ernest Cole did during apartheid and in New York when he was exiled, Garry Winnogrand had crazy work ethic, I really love Andre Wagners work in New York and Daniel Arnold was the first street photographers work I was introduced to and I think he’s stuff really stuck with me as well. There’s so many things to take away from different photographers’s I could list them forever.
6. Where is your favorite place to shoot?
There’s nothing better than a good day in Johannesburg CBD.
7. Do you shoot on other formats?
Right now it’s only film 35 and 120 but I’ve been thinking about digital I’m just waiting to find a digital camera I actually like.
8. What is your go to camera?
My go to cameras are my Konica Hexar and my Yashica T3, I never go anywhere without them.
9. What kind of photos do you hope to capture/ what kind of photography do you want to be known for?
I think right now I just want to do street and make a meaningful contribution to the genre especially because the community doing it in South Africa is really small. I think its also important for us to document our time right now there’s so much happening and a lot is changing everyday and we need to have a record of it.
10. Do you have any future projects you’re potentially working on?
I’ve been working on street photography book for almost two years now, it’s a short documentary of this particular part of Johannesburg CBD that I’ve been frequenting and I’m really excited to put it out sometime this year.
